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Vaarsuvius
|"Re: Is Varsuuvius Lawful, Chaotic or True Neutral?", The Giant, 8/18/2011. |masters= Aarindarius Roy Greenhilt |apprentices= Elan |relatives=Inkyrius (ex-mate) Two children |status= Living |hided= |level= 16 (effective caster level 17 when near Blackwing) |str= 5-9 |dex= <12 |con= 8-12 |int= 24 |wis= 10-11 |cha= 6-9 |feats= Alertness, Empower Spell, Extend Spell, Improved Counterspell, Maximize Spell, Quicken Spell, Scribe Scroll, does not possess: Silent Spell or Still Spell |skills= Appraise +3 (from familiar), Concentration 12+, Craft: Alchemy, Decipher Script, Knowledge: Arcana, Knowledge: Engineering, Knowledge: Religion (not high), Ride 0, Spot 0, Search 0, Speak Language, Elven, Raven, not Draconic, Spellcraft, Use Magic Device +2 |abilities= Elf racial abilities, Familiar: Blackwing, Share Spells with Familiar, Scry on Familiar, Barred Schools: Conjuration and Necromancy |spells= See "Powers and Abilities" below |width=250px |nicknames = V (The Order) Suvie (Inkyrius) Other Parent (Vaarsuvius' Children)}} Vaarsuvius is an ambiguously gendered high elf and a member of the Order of the Stick. After studying for nearly a century, Vaarsuvius decided to become an adventurer to expand their knowledge. Vaarsuvius is sometimes referred to as V, and has a friendship with Haley Starshine. Vaarsuvius has had a contentious relationship with Belkar Bitterleaf. They have been openly acknowledged as the most powerful member of the Order of the Stick. In game terms Vaarsuvius is an Evoker, a Wizard specialized in the Evocation school. V's barred schools are ConjurationComic #340, "You Should Have Seen What He Did With the Corsage" and NecromancyNever stated, but can be inferred from information—Vaarsuvius has used at least one spell from each school except for conjuration and necromancy. Further, in Comic #633, the Directors pointed out that their proposed Soul Splices would "complement your own spellcasting deficits most suberbly", then named a conjurer and necromancer as well as a sorcerer-archmage. V's familiar is a raven, which they never got around to naming, but Haley Starshine named Blackwing. Vaarsuvius constantly forgot that Blackwing existed, until around the time of Comic 674.Comic #674,"The Elf Who Cried Raven" Biography Pre-Order On the Origin of PCs Vaarsuvius, was born to ranger parents in the Great Elven Forest. V was introduced to magic at an early age by Master Aarindarius, a close family friend who later took Vaarsuvius on as an apprentice, a position that V filled for sixty years. V was married and has two 26 year old adopted twins with their mate Inkyrius. They live in the village of Ivyleaf. Inkyrius (nicknamed Kyrie) is also an elf and is an apprentice baker. Eventually Aarindarius became concerned that, while V excelled at the academic aspects of magic, the apprentice had become too isolated from the real world and thus Vaarsuvius was sent out into the world to learn more (via a Bugsby's Evicting Hand spell). Vaarsuvius decided that the best way to make a name in magic was to challenge one of the Iron Mages, a group who specialized in the artistic side of magic. One of the Mages would accept the challenge and then Mage and challenger would be given an hour to research one or more spells using a given material as a component. Whoever was judged to have created the most effective and artistically pleasing set of spells would be deemed the winner. Vaarsuvius issued a challenge, with the aim of outdoing their opponent and thus gaining access to the vast libraries of the Iron Mages. The challenge began, but Vaarsuvius, temporarily distracted by the Master of Ceremonies asking a question, replied in their usual long-winded manner, leaving V with very little time to actually complete the task. Vaarsuvius watched in annoyance as the Iron Mage revealed a sizeable collection of inscribed spells, potions and a magic item, a considerable lead over the two spells that Vaarsuvius had inscribed in the time. Proceeding to the testing stage, V shockingly realized a serious error in scribing one of their spells, transposing range and area of effect. The resultant blast leveled the stadium. Unsurprisingly, Vaarsuvius was disqualified. Apparently attempting to drown their sorrows, Vaarsuvius visited a local tavern where V encountered the rogue Haley Starshine. Discussing the relative merits of research against adventuring, Haley persuaded V to visit the local adventurer's tavern to see what opportunities might be available. While still uncertain, V agreed. At the tavern, Vaarsuvius encountered the fighter Roy Greenhilt, who was recruiting a team to locate and destroy the lich Xykon. Haley had already signed up and recommended Vaarsuvius to Roy as a possible recruit. Irritated by Roy questioning their abilities, V magically shattered the table that Roy was sitting at with a Fireball. Roy then asked V to join the group, but the wizard initially declined, claiming that Roy was clearly only inviting V to sign up because he was intimidated by Vaarsuvius' mental prowess and needed the opportunity to reestablish his dominance. Roy proceeded to describe in highly technical detail the nature of a Fireball spell and the specific need for someone who could cast it—as Vaarsuvius just had. Initially shocked and then pleased at this unexpected display of intellect from a fighter, Vaarsuvius agreed to join the party. Vaarsuvius' marital status came as a complete shock to their teammates Belkar Bitterleaf and Durkon Thundershield, although Haley appeared to already be aware of this. The Order of the Stick Dungeon Crawlin' Fools Vaarsuvius is the strongest member of the order, capable of fighting many foes at once. V originally joined the order just to find the secret to arcane power, but they have made friends with everyone on the team besides Belkar. Thus, V now willingly follows the Order wherever they go. Throughout the adventures of the Order to date, Vaarsuvius has generally proven themself to be a highly effective member of the party, using their considerable magical abilities to great effect. V has, on occasion, found themself to be vulnerable in battle, something typical of mages. V took the ring of Wizardry from Xykon's finger as their prize after the battle. No Cure for the Paladin Blues After the Order escaped the bandits of the Wooden Forest, V was transformed into a lizard by a hag they encountered on their way. Eventually when everyone descended a pit they encountered a dragon. V was almost eaten by the dragon but Haley shot him in the eye. The dragon then swallowed Haley but V was able to cast Suggestion on the dragon. Vaarsuvius was unable to have a huge impact in the first fight against Miko Miyazaki due to them being hit by a tanglefoot bag and unable to concentrate due to it and the storm. They were only able to cast Fireball (which hit Roy) and cast Hold Person, which made a successful opportunity of a flank from Haley and Roy. Since then, V has traveled with the Order to Azure City, where V was given the run of the city's spell libraries, although, much to their frustration, the oddities of the rules prevented V from gaining as many additional spells as could be hoped. War and XPs Visiting the Oracle of Sunken Valley, Vaarsuvius posed the question "How will I achieve complete and total ultimate arcane power?" The Oracle replied "By saying the right four words to the right being at the right time for all the wrong reasons." This turns out to be a foreshadow to strip 634, where Vaarsuvius said the words "I... I must succeed" to the three archfiends, allowing the elf to harness three ultra-powerful evil spirits at once.Comic #634, "The Wrong Reasons After a side adventure in Cliffport to rescue Roy's sister Julia from Elan's brother Nale, the Order returned to Azure City, with, unbeknownst to Vaarsuvius, Nale, now masquerading as Elan. Later that night after (unknowingly) helping out the fiend Sabine with her undirected rage at Nale, Vaarsuvius was forced to prevent Belkar (whom Nale had enchanted) from murdering Durkon. Visiting Haley to procure some decent restraints for Belkar, they discovered the Linear Guild attempting to overpower the now-returned Elan and Haley. Vaarsuvius was faced with the identical twins. V swiftly tricked Nale into revealing himself by simply insulting his many so-called master plans, then blasted him into unconsciousness.Comic #397, "Leggo My Ego! When Azure City fell under attack by Xykon's hobgoblin army the next day, Vaarsuvius easily bested Redcloak's Titanium Elementals by using the Dismissal spell from scrolls V had in hand.Comic #424, "A Wizard's Work Unable to return to their assigned position on the wall, V volunteered their services to help defend the breach in the wall caused by the elementals.Comic #426, "Three of a Kind" Vaarsuvius orchestrated the initial defense of the breach by picking the thirteen best warriors available, using V's magic to provide them all with multiple magical bonuses, then using an enlargement spell to expand them to a huge size, allowing them to wipe out multiple hobgoblins at a time.Comic #427, "They're Just Another Brick in the Wall" A Death Knight, however, managed to use the corpses as a bridge and blasted through the front-lines.Comic #436, "Non-Military Intelligence" Vaarsuvius managed to disable and deprive the spell-resistant death knight of its mounted combat feats by disintegrating its skeletal mount.Comic #437, "Battle Momentum" Despite this, the undead easily wiped away the warriors facing it with an abyssal blast (a death knight special ability), leaving Vaarsuvius standing alone against the brutal opponent.Comic #440, "Flew the Coop" However, the death knight was soon after crushed by the head of Xykon's undead dragon after Roy chopped it off in mid-flight.Comic #441, "Getting Ahead and Staying Ahead" Later on in the battle, Redcloak leads the entire army in a charge at the breach that frightens a large number of the soldiers into fleeing. Vaarsuvius states that V is out of spells save for Invisibility, which V casts on themself in order to escape, apologizing that they can do nothing more.Comic #452, "Change of Direction" V was later found by Elan hiding among the refugees of the city sneaking into Hinjo's junk. Although no longer having any spells, Vaarsuvius advises Elan on creating an illusion of a celestial lion to intimidate the enemy.Comic #480,"On Usefulness" Don't Split the Party During the four months period when the Order of the Stick was broken into separate groups, Vaarsuvius worked obsessively trying to find a way to scry on or communicate with Haley, blaming themself for stranding her in Azure City. All such attempts were thwarted by Xykon's Cloister spell. V claims that their spells were too weak to make a difference during the battle, and retreat could have been avoided had they had more powerful spells, stating that they wasted their time harassing Belkar rather than gaining more knowledge. Vaarsuvius' final attempt, using three birds to convey a spoken message to Haley and Belkar, was thwarted when the latter shot and later roasted the birds on a spit.Comic #554,"You're No Help at All"Comic #563,"Air Mail" Later, Vaarsuvius turned to stone a large demon summoned by QarrComics #584,"Improbable Causes"Comic #591,"Antipathy for the Devil" and disintegrated Daimyo Kubota as Elan was leading him to his trial.Comic #595, "Trial of the Century" V then left Elan and Durkon behind, believing them to hinder their search for Haley. After several weeks on a desert island trying to research spells to help locate Haley, V met with the demon Qarr again, who had been spying on V. After being threatened by Vaarsuvius, he attempts to bargain with V to help them achieve ultimate arcane power, in exchange for not killing him. Vaarsuvius refuses, but before a blow can be struck, a dragon appears, claiming she is the mother of the dragon Vaarsuvius killed in the search for the Starmetal. She tells V that she will kill V's family in retribution, and departs after trapping Vaarsuvius and draining their magic. V sells their soul to three archfiends who conveniently appear and offer them greater power than V could achieve on their own, by splicing three souls into their body. V agrees, with the words "I... I must succeed", fulfilling the Oracle's prediction that V would achieve unmatched arcane power by saying the right four words to the right people at the right time for all the wrong reasons (as the fiends suggested an alternate way to save V's family, but one that V was too proud to consider). .]] With the power of the Soul Splice V saves their family, while viciously killing the Dragon's entire bloodline in the process. However, this horrifies Inkyrius and the children, and after some arguing, Inkyrius asks V to remain and work through their problems, V teleports away. This was later one of the factors Inkyrius filed for divorce later. Vaarsuvius then returned to the fleet planning to show off their newfound arcane power, only to be rebuffed by Daigo and Kazumi, who point out that Durkon and Elan left to meet Haley in Cliff port. V, incensed, left, but not before teleporting the fleet to what they viewed as the perfect location. V then met with Haley and rescued Roy's body, while gaining the respect of Belkar, due to the fact that V then was evil. After meeting with Durkon and Elan, V teleported them both back to where V had brought the fleet, only to be told it would take ten minutes to resurrect Roy. Unstable due to the soul-splice and V's own insecurities, V proceeded to attempt to take down Xykon. Breaking through the cloister that surrounded the city, V appeared ready to fight, only to be casually beaten into the ground by the lich, who didn't even see V as a threat for most of the battle, and removed V's slender advantage with repeated uses of energy drain. Xykon then flattened V with a huge chunk of masonry, disrupting and ending the soul splice. It was at this moment that O-Chul, Xykon's paladin prisoner and playtoy, broke out of his cage (killing a roach that attempted to warn the bad guys), ripped Xykon's phylactery from around the neck of Redcloak, and (when the cleric used Word of Recall to get away) pounded on it with the bar he'd removed from his cage. While this couldn't dent the phylactery (20 hardness), he distracted Xykon, allowing Vaarsuvius to cast Invisibility on themself while O-Chul was getting pummeled with Meteor Swarm and Maximized Lightning Bolt. Balked by a closed door, Vaarsuvius was about to climb out the hole V had blasted in the tower's side... but, upon hearing Xykon's plans for the unconscious O-Chul, returned and poured a healing potion (lifted from a dead hobgoblin) down the paladin's throat. Though they were then caught by Xykon (Liches get a racial +8 on Listen checks), O-Chul snatched both V and the phylactery from Xykon's grasp, and ran to the hole, which overlooked the Azure City Rift. As he pondered how to get the amulet to the Rift, Vaarsuvius remembered Blackwing. As Blackwing flew to the Rift, Xykon cast Mass Hold Person on Vaarsuvius and O-chul before realizing his phylactery was headed for the Rift. The lich flew up to retrieve it, Blackwing being held stunned by what he saw in the Rift itself... only to find written on the amulet: The amulet then exploded, injuring the lich and falling into a sewer. In anger Xykon returned to the tower and tried to cast meteor swarm down their throats, but Vaarsuvius was somehow teleported by the Monster in the Darkness along with O-chul to the island where Roy was being raised. Blood Runs in the Family Chastened by the events of the soul splice, V resolved to be a better master to Blackwing, and from that point on Blackwing consistently appears with Vaarsuvius. When they party fails to find Girard's Gate in the location known to the Sapphire Guard, the party headed to Bleedingham, where V, along with Haley and Elan, is taken by the bounty hunters Gannji and Enor. While a guest at the palace, V helped Haley free several slaves, though these same slaves were later recaptured and burned at the stake as a display for Elan. During the games in Elan's honor, V, Haley, and Elan were ambushed by Zz'dtri (disguised as Polozius), and Yikyik. V engaged in an arcane battle with Zz'dtri, and was ultimately successful in defeating the drow, though V also got banished to the Semi-Elemental Plane of Ranch Dressing in the process. Belkar and Durkon would eventually rescue V from that place. Finally arriving at Girard's Pyramid, Vaarsuvius's actions while V was spliced with Haerta Bloodsoak's soul would come back to haunt them. V discovered a mural that made them realize that the Familicide spell killed Girard Draketooth's entire family, as well as Penelope and many other innocent people. Horrified at this, they ran away, descending into the pyramid, activating a piston/trapdoor trap, knocking out V and Blackwing. Waking up, Blackwing attempts to console V, which almost works but fails due a mummy, which also activated the trap, echo "your fault" from Nale, which causes V to retreat by casting Passwall. While walking through a tunnel, V becomes even more distraught as Blackwing makes it worse. Later, Qarr teleports to them and taunts them. V threatens to vent their fury on him, so Qarr attempts to convince V that the 3 spell casters influenced V's mind, yet V makes a inference that it is untrue. V makes another influence that the Order descended into the pyramid when Qarr didn't stop them from going up. Descending into the pyramid, V overhears Roy talking about destroying the Gate. V, knowing that there may be too many variables of which he doesn't know, such as the planet Blackwing saw in the Azure City rift, attempts to warn them by catching their attention by knocking on the wall with a Bugsby's Hand spell and shouting at the top of their lungs. However, their attempt fails as the IFCC decides that was the time to call in part of V's contract, putting their souls to be strapped into a table, the IFCC revealing that their body will be shielded from all harm during the duration of V's stay. Roy destroys the gate. V watches the Order on the IFCC's television, V is gagged and Sabine consoles V, saying that they took down more righteous mortals than them. Later, due to Nale's death by the hands of Tarquin, Sabine tells V everything she knows about the Vector Legion, including Laurin Shattersmith's weakness of pulling the big guns early and their level. V's time in Hell comes to a end, and V joins the battle against the Empire of Blood's army with a Wall of Fire, temporarily defending the Order. V admits to Roy about what Blackwing saw in the rift, Roy replies that they can't take the risk of the Snarl destroying souls. Later, when the Order rides away on Bloodfeast, V uses Prismatic Spray on the Vector Legion's dinosaur ride. Then, after some fighting with Miron, Tarquin, and Laurin, V is incacipated by Tarquin with a whip, which is later held by Laurin. V is saved by "Durkon". V takes Belkar up the Mechane while Blackwing grabs Bloodfeast. Up on the Mechane, Tarquin, who about to chop off Elan's hand, pushes off Tarquin, who hangs onto the rails due to Laurin destroying the hand. He also loses his knife, to which V later gives to Belkar. V engages in a "caster fight' with Laurin, Laurin seemingly having the upper hand in spells, but she books after V tells her they have 25 spells remaining. After the battle, V talks to Roy about the Familicide, Soul Splice, and the Snarl. V asks if they should depart, Roy replies by saying he won't stop them, but sometimes you have to stop the bleeding before you can start to heal. Roy ends the conversation by saying that they don't know 'what' is really going on anymore. Current Activities The ''Mechane stopped in Tinkertown to undertake repairs on its way to Kraagor's Gate, where V purchased a teleportation orb. But when they stopped at Zenith Peak for the Northern Godsmoot, V was unable to prevent the vampire Gontor Hammerfell from sneaking aboard and stealing the item, which the Hel contingent used to escape to Firmament, planning to disrupt the Council of Clans. While running through Passage Pass, a clan of frost giants attacked the airship. V and Haley flew out to clear the way for the ship. They were initially very successful in dispatching the giants, but ran into some trouble with a group of giant clerics, who slowed them down, allowing another group to ambush the Mechane while only Roy and Elan were aboard to defend it. While this went on, Andi mutinied and took the ship off course, abandoning V, Haley, Belkar and Blackwing. When V and company had finished with the clerics, they could not find the Mechane. So they cleared the pass of the giants before finding the Mechane by following its black smoke. Vaarsuvius is currently in Firmament. When "Durkon"'s vampire spawn attacked them in the tunnels, they cast a Forcecage to protect the party, inadvertently trapping them for a short time. When they dismissed the spell, V killed at least one vampire with a magic missle. In the combat, they were drained of at least three levels, losing one 8th and two 7th level prepared spells (the other two 8th level spells having already been cast). V must make a saving through in 24 hours to determine if the level loss is permanent. Personality, Abilities and Traits According to V's character profile in the No Cure for the Paladin Blues collection, Vaarsuvius is currently around 130 years old, although on their application form to join the Order V claimed to be 103. V is rational, intelligent, perceptive, witty, and erudite to the point of often being unnecessarily long-winded and somewhat detached. V sees the world in a scholarly manner and is good at explaining things, but somewhat lacking in other people skills. To summarize, V fits many of the characteristics of the stereotypical intellectual, albeit backed up by the ability to inflict a considerable amount of magical destruction on those around them. Vaarsuvius has a (justifiably) high opinion of their own magical and intellectual ability, which frequently comes across as arrogance and often feels that their powers are being wasted on minor matters. V's main motivation is knowledge and arcane power. However, V also finds joy in unleashing great destructive spells on a deserving target. V's principal weakness is that V generally possesses the expectation that things should be clear and logical, and gets highly frustrated when the "real" world all too frequently fails to live up to this. Many of the comic's game-related jokes are based on V's observations about the rules of the world in which they live. V appears to be overly confident in their power, which is fairly common in Wizards and Sorcerers—Roy's father Eugene Greenhilt himself shares this personality trait, as revealed in On the Origin of PCs. Vaarsuvius is often irritated at the irrationality of the rest of the party. V has a relationship of mutual respect with Roy, based on their shared intellect, gets on reasonably well with Durkon and appears to regard Haley as a close friend and occasional confidante. V dislikes Belkar immensely (however V finds the ranger much more bearable than the arrogant and commanding then-paladin Miko Miyazaki) and at one point went out of their way to irritate the halfling after the incident in Azure City when Belkar drunkenly kissed V. Vaarsuvius finds Elan's frivolity highly frustrating, although V has shown a genuine affection for the bard on occasion, mostly notably after Elan announced that he wanted to become a wizard and dressed up in a stereotypical wizard robe, hat and beard. Initially assuming that Elan was making fun of their profession, V became angry with Elan, leaving the bard in tears. Ultimately realizing that Elan actually saw wizards as being cool and powerful and wanted to emulate them by becoming one himself, V apologized. Elan happily accepted and the two now consider each other to be friends. V seems to have made an apology by teaching Elan how to make better, more effective illusions. In addition to this, V seems to believe arcane power is the be all and end all, belittling Durkon's divine powers ("It is not as if spells were REAL magic!"), and seeing them as the only options, seldom considering conventional means. In their last encounter, V was mocked mercilessly by Xykon, who proceeded to crush their windpipe with his bare hands while pointing out that types of power don't matter, as long as you earned it, and even O-Chul is wiser than Vaarsuvius in that regard. Vaarsuvius seems to have taken the "lesson" taught by Xykon to heart, however, as V has since become much less about using overwhelming arcane power and more about supporting their comrades and finding clever ways around an opponent's defenses, such as during the battle with Zz'dtri at the arena. Vaarsuvius has a notable tendency to inflict punishment on others using the "Explosive Runes" spell; those who cross V often encounter the phrase "I prepared Explosive Runes this morning" (or similar) written somewhere unexpected. This was especially apparent in the aftermath of the kiss in the Azure City; Vaarsuvius subsequently used Explosive Runes on Belkar no fewer than 14 times including rigging a can of Belkar's coffee with them (modifying it to read "Explosive Runes brand coffee: Good to the last Kaboom"). V has also demonstrated a gift for improvised retribution; after being polymorphed into a lizard, Vaarsuvius responds to Belkar's attempt to determine V's gender with "My vengeance will be prolonged, diminutive cretin." Subsequently, V used Suggestion (one of only three spells their lizard form could cast) on a black dragon that has swallowed Haley, then commanded the dragon to "Vomit. Now. And aim for the halfling." V apparently likes the works of Judy Garland. V also likes coffee, specifically espresso, though V won't say no to a glass of fine elven wine. V is a vegetarian. Relationships The Order of the Stick Roy Greenhilt "I respect your integrity. I would thus still value your opinion." V affords Roy a certain level of respect due to the fighter's intellect. V addresses him as "Sir Greenhilt" despite the fact that Roy is not a knight. Haley Starshine "I bunk only with Miss Starshine." Haley and V consider each other dear friends, to the point that V refuses to room with anyone else. Further, Haley was initially the only member of the Order to know that V is (or rather, was) married. While the party was separated, V became obsessed with finding Haley. Elan V initially found Elan's constant stupidity annoying and was insulted when he expressed an interest in becoming a wizard, believing it to be an insult to V's profession, only to greatly upset Elan and learn Elan wanted to be a wizard because he looked up to V. Since then, V has infrequently mentored Elan in better using his bardic magic, especially his illusions. When Elan was kidnapped by bandits, V said that they would not throw away their hard earned friendship with him so quickly as to abandon him. Durkon Thundershield Vaarsuvius respects Durkon as a person, though, for a while, V thought very little of the divine magic he uses. After V bargained their soul to save their children and find Haley, Durkon commended what they did (not knowing the price) despite the fact that they did not manage to defeat Xykon, and the two became closer. Belkar Bitterleaf Roy: "Is that true, Vaarsuvius? Did you cast Explosive Runes on him?" Vaarsuvius: "Technically, I cast Explosive Runes on a series of inanimate objects." Belkar: "Well technically, it was the owlbear that ate you, asshat." Belkar and V have a history of constant petty quarreling, but recently their rivalry seems to have subsided, to the point of which they are (almost) friends. This is probably due to V's humbling and Belkar's new (fake) 'team player' attitude. Additionally, as neither are of the Good alignment, they shared mistrusts about 'Durkon' the vampire. Blackwing "I have not always been the most considerate master. Or teammate. Or mate, for that matter. I appreciate the fact that, when the fate of the world potentially rested upon our actions, you were able to look past my previous mistreatment of you." Originally, V usually forgot about Blackwing, only remembering him when someone reminded V about his existence. However, after the consequences of the Soul Splice ended with Blackwing failing to throw Xykon's phylactery into the Snarl rift, Vaarsuvius thanked Blackwing, to which he replied "You're welcome.", the first time Blackwing spoke to Vaarsuvius in common in a few years. He told V what he saw in the rift and V expressed that they don't know everything about their mission. Vaarsuvius' attitude towards Blackwing was further explored in ''Blood Runs in the Family'', in which instead of Blackwing only appearing occasionally, he was kept around at all times. Vaarsuvius expressed anger when the party completely forgot about Blackwing, to the point that they believed him to be an illusion. Blackwing acted as a stabilizer when V was having difficulty controlling their emotions, such as when V was angry at the Process Server and the time when V became distressed at learning the consequences of the Familicide. V expressed some annoyance at Blackwing such as when he chanted "Caster fight!" before V's duel with Laurin Shattersmith and believed a slight smudge of dirt on three of his feathers was a state of dying, but ultimately, V wants to be a better master to Blackwing. Team Evil Xykon Vaarsuvius: ''"Your villany comes to an end this day!"'' Xykon:'' "Yeah, see I'm not feeling it. You just don't have that "righteous outrage" tone. What's really going on here?"'' V is not particularly motivated to end the threat of Xykon. Even V's attack on him while under the effects of the Soul Splice was simply because he was the most powerful opponent that they could pit themself against. Family Inkyrius "Are you implying that I have been a less-than-attentive mate?" V and Inkyrius were initially married, but after V's actions under the influence of Soul Splice they were divorced. V deeply regrets their separation and has spent time mournfully looking at old photographs of the two of them, but decided not to contest the divorce in order to help save the world.Comic #679, "Oh, Right, That Other Problem..." Children V was not always very attentive to their children, a fact that V now regrets. Enemies Daimyo Kabota "What is a "Kubota"?" Vaarsuvius never cared much for Daimyo Kubota, and when Elan captured him, V simply disintegrated him and blew away the ash, saying that they had no time for a trial. Others Celia "I have no feelings on viewing you. You are largely irrelevant." V was openly dismissive of Celia during the Soul Splice, regarding her as to insignificant to take notice of. Sabine Sabine: ''"You know what? You're right! I'm gonna go find them right now and kick that hussie's ass!"'' Vaarsuvius: ''"Think nothing of it."'' Oddly, V and Sabine seem to get along rather well. They shared a drink in Azure City where V gave Sabine relationship advice. When V was trapped in Hell with Sabine (who had been banished there), the two sat quite comfortably in each other's company. Sabine also encouraged V, when V was returning to the world, to "knock 'em dead". It turns out she also took advantage of their time together to slip V useful information that helps them defeat Tarquin and his associates. Powers and Abilities Vaarsuvius appears to be level 12 during an incident where they attempted to charge the sum of 360 gold pieces for casting a Fireball spell (which carried a cost of thirty times the level of the spellcaster), and their ability to cast Disintegrate (a 6th-level spell). They are shown asking Zz'dtri if he would like Time Stop (9th level) for his house-ruled Fly. Later they scribe the 7th-level spell Power Word: Blind, showing that they have progressed up to at least 13th level. In some comics, Vaarsuvius targeted a group of NPC soldiers with several Mass enhancement spells: since such spells affect 1 creature per level, and the target group was specifically limited by Vaarsuvius to no more than 13 soldiers, it may be inferred that Vaarsuvius had not progressed beyond 13th level at that point. As of #935, V had advanced to 16th level, based on spells remaining, a status confirmed in #1102 where the duration of their Forcecage is 34 hours (2 hours/level, +1 effective level from Blackwing's Ioun Stone). *V is specialized in the Evocation school of magic; one of V's barred schools is Conjuration, and the other has never been directly mentioned, but by process of elimination must be Necromancy (though while trying to barter spells with Zz'dtri, V mentioned that there is a Vampiric Touch spell in their spellbook). *'High Intelligence': V is known to have had an Intelligence of 18 when recruited into the Order, which has increased in the interim. *'Elf': As an elf, Vaarsuvius is proficient with a bow and arrow, though V is by no means particularly good at using it. *'Spell List': Arcane Eye, Banishment, Bixby's Crushing Hand, Bugsby's Cat-Retrieving Hand, Bugsby's Clenched Fist, Bugsby's Expressive Single Digit, Bugsby's Flicking Finger, Bugsby's Grasping Hand, Bull's Strength, Burning Hands, Chain Lightning, Charm Monster, Cone of Cold, Crushing Despair, Detect Magic, Dimensional Anchor, Dimensional Lock, Disintegrate, Dispel Magic, Distant Inferno, Dominate Person, Expeditious Retreat, Explosive Runes, Feather Fall, Fireball, Fire Trap, Flamefinger, Fly, Forcecage, Greater Dispel Magic, Greater Invisibility, Gust of Wind, Haste, Heroism, Hold Monster, Hold Person, Hold Portal, Identify, Invisibility, Discount Invisibility Sphere, Lightning Bolt, Locate Creature, Locate Object, Magic Missile, Mass Bear's Endurance, Mass Bull's Strength, Mass Enlarge Person, Mass Suggestion, Mind Blank, Overland Flight, Owl's Wisdom, Passwall, Polymorph, Power Word Blind, Power Word Stun, Prestidigitation, Prismatic Spray, Protection from Arrows, Ray of Frost, Resilient Sphere, Scorching Ray, See Invisibility, Sending, Shadow Conjuration (for Evan's Spiked Tentacles), Silent Image, Sleep, Stinking Cloud, Stoneskin, Stone to Flesh, Suggestion, Summon Plot Hole, True Seeing, Vaarsuvius' Enhanced Scrying, Vaarsuvius' Greater Animal Messenger, Vampiric Touch (not castable), Veil, Wall of Fire, Wall of Force, an unspecified polymorph spell, and an unspecified sonic spell. Weapons and Equipment *'Headband of Intellect +4': V has stated that V has a base intelligence score of 18. But When V was 11th level, V was able to cast four 6th level spells, indicating that at that point V possessed an item which gave them a +4 to intelligence. It has been hypothesized that the headband V wears is a +4 Headband of Intellect, which would account for this bonus. *'Ring of Wizardry III or IV': This ring was chosen from Xykon's horde after his defeat. When fighting the Black Dragon of Wooden Forest, V states that the ring would allow them to cast Suggestion, a third level spell, many times. Thus the ring must be a level III or IV Ring of Wizardry, doubling V's 3rd or 4th level slots. *'Orange Prism Ioun Stone Bracelet': This item is in the possession of Blackwing, who stole it from Laurin Shattersmith and had it crafted into a bracelet by a gnome Artificer. Vaarsuvius benefits from the stone when Blackwing is nearby due to their familiar relationship. It grants +1 caster level to all spells cast. Note that when V cast Forcecage with a 34 hour duration in 1102, they were NOT level 17, but rather level 16 and enjoying the bonus from this item. *V also possesses the following items: a doily, two small gemstones, many scrolls and spellbooks, Finding Plot Holes for Dummies, twelve more books, two potions, apricot-scented face gel, a chalice, a jar of diamond dust, Bleedingham papers, defensive potions, Tarquin's whip, and a portrait of Inkyrius. The Order of the Stick Adventure Game Vaarsuvius is one of the characters players may choose when playing the Order of the Stick Adventure Game. The abilities of the character are reflective of their personality and skills as depicted in the comic, with cards titled such things as Fireball, Verbose Recitation, and Ambiguous Gender. The listed alignment is Arrogant Neutral. Trivia * It is a running joke in the comic that Vaarsuvius's gender is intentionally unclear, even from their teammates, and author Rich Burlew has already stated that V's gender will not be revealed and that any instances of characters in the comic referring to V as "he" or "she" only reflect on those characters' perceptions, and not on the reality of V's gender.Burlew, Rich: Order of the Stick FAQ. Retrieved 1 October 2008. ** Vaarsuvius appears to have trouble telling genders apart themself—when Roy was magically transformed into a woman, V appeared not to notice. V also did not find it odd when Nale (disguised as Elan) was making out with an apparently male CPPD officer (actually Sabine shapeshifted). When Sabine asked V about their opinions on men, V claimed to not be certain they were the most qualified to discuss gender traits. In one instance, V was transformed into a lizard and Belkar examined the lizard's genitals in an attempt to determine their gender, but lacked sufficient knowledge pertaining to lizard biology. ** Vaarsuvius's children are adopted, which could be an indicator that Vaarsuvius and Inkyrius can't have children of their own, and seeing as how neither of their genders are known, it could indicate that the two are a homosexual couple. Another possible hint to V's sexuality is their stated appreciation for gay iconWikipedia article: Judy Garland as gay icon Judy Garland.Comic #397, "Leggo My Ego!"''talk'' ** In the Gygax Magazine continuity, Vaarsuvius has changed genders, appearing subtly different but just as androgynous. * Vaarsuvius is an anagram for the latin phrase Varius Avus, meaning various grandfathers. It may also be a slight corruption of Vesuvius, the name of a large volcano that erupted and destroyed Pompeii. This is backed up by V's evil opposite at one time being named Pompey. * Rich has revealed that the four words to gain ultimate arcane power, "I...I must succeed" were actually said to themself, not to the directors of the IFCC, so it wasn't a mistake that the prophecy said "being" instead of "beings". Gallery File:V.png|Vaarsuvius. Soul Spliced Vaarsuvius.PNG|Soul Spliced Vaarsuvius. eret.PNG|Vaarsuvius's old hair drawn in the new style. Asdsdfdfff.PNG|Vaarsuvius at the onset of their soul-splicing. Vaarsuvius New.png|Vaarsuvius's new look post soul-splicing and post-art upgrade. References Category:Characters Category:Elves Category:Living Characters Category:True Neutral Characters Category:Neutral Characters Category:Wizards Category:Order of the Stick Category:Vaarsuvius' Family